Advanced technology continues to impact dependability negatively, according to the 2016 Vehicle Dependability Study compiled by market research firm J.D. “Being recognized by J.D. Power for having the most dependable vehicles in key segments is a tremendous honor and demonstration that Chevrolet is the brand that customers can truly count on”.
Advertisement
To get this information, J.D. Power polled 33,560 original owners of 2013 model-year vehicles to see how many problems were experienced in the past 12 months. Those issues are growing and have lowered the entire industry’s dependability scores.
“The increase in technology-related problems has two sources”, said Renee Stephens, vice president of United States automotive at J.D. Power. “Right now, if consumers can’t rely on their vehicle to connect to their smartphone, or have faith that their navigation system will route them to their destination, they’re certainly not yet ready to trust that autonomous technology will keep their vehicle out of the ditch”. Cadillac, which ranked fourth previous year, slipped to 15th, at 145 problems per 100, slightly better than the industry average. The overall dependability of a brand is determined by the number of problems experienced per 100 vehicles, with a lower score reflecting higher quality. The industry average of problems per 100 vehicles rose to 152 from 147 past year, and numerous problems were related to the controls, entertainment choices and voice-recognition glitches in the touch screen or hands-free smart phone use.
Among owners who experienced no problems with their vehicle, 55 percent said they’d purchase a vehicle from the same brand when buying again.
Toyota’s Lexus luxury division captured the No. 1 spot for the fifth year in a row. Porsche was second with a PP100 of 96 and Buick third with a PP100 of 106. For those with a voice recognition problem, 67 percent said the system didn’t understand them.
Among automakers, General Motors led with eight segment wins, followed by Toyota with six.
In the SUV, MPV, Van, and Pickup segments, General Motors models won 4 out of the 10 segments, with the Buick Encore getting the highest ranking for the Small SUV category, the Chevrolet Equinox winning Compact SUV, GMC Yukon earning top spot in the Large SUV category, and Chevrolet Silverado HD winning Large Heavy Duty pickup.
When it comes to actual mechanical reliability, things are looking good as the number of engine/transmission problems decreased to 24 PP100 for 2016, down from 26 PP100.
Advertisement
Seven of the top 10 problems are design-related.
